Hondatalover wrote: When I returned home I sat in the car at idle gathering a few things before heading inside and I thought I heard a rod knock or spun bearing. Something bad. It fluctuated with revs but when I disengaged the clutch the noise went away, so relived that it's probably just the $140 pilot bearing... lol Gotta do the rear main anyway and might as well do the clutch and throw out bearing while we're in there.

If you hear the noise with the engine idling, the transmission in neutral, and the clutch pedal out meaning you're spinning the input shaft of the transmission, your pilot bearing is static due to the input shaft spinning with the crankshaft. If the noise goes away or you maybe hear the noise slow to a stop when you push the clutch pedal in, it might be main shaft bearing noise in the transmission. It wouldn't hurt to change the transmission fluid/oil and see how much metal is mixed in with the old oil.

I can't speak for the Vigor but the 2G Integra used 5w-30 motor oil for the manual transmission whereas the 3G Integra used the then-new Honda MTF. Those two Integras seemed to have a similar shift feel but who knows.

There are always other, whack-o possible causes for the noise. A friend back in the '80s had one of the rubber bumper isolators break loose from the clutch disk in his Civic transmission. The bite point in the clutch travel included a strange chirp sound until he replaced the clutch assembly. At that time, you had to buy a Honda OEM clutch assembly to get the disk with the rubber bumper things instead of the usual springs.

Hondatalover wrote: When I returned home I sat in the car at idle gathering a few things before heading inside and I thought I heard a rod knock or spun bearing. Something bad. It fluctuated with revs but when I disengaged the clutch the noise went away, so relived that it's probably just the $140 pilot bearing... lol Gotta do the rear main anyway and might as well do the clutch and throw out bearing while we're in there.

If you hear the noise with the engine idling, the transmission in neutral, and the clutch pedal out meaning you're spinning the input shaft of the transmission, your pilot bearing is static due to the input shaft spinning with the crankshaft. If the noise goes away or you maybe hear the noise slow to a stop when you push the clutch pedal in, it might be main shaft bearing noise in the transmission. It wouldn't hurt to change the transmission fluid/oil and see how much metal is mixed in with the old oil.

I can't speak for the Vigor but the 2G Integra used 5w-30 motor oil for the manual transmission whereas the 3G Integra used the then-new Honda MTF. Those two Integras seemed to have a similar shift feel but who knows.

There are always other, whack-o possible causes for the noise. A friend back in the '80s had one of the rubber bumper isolators break loose from the clutch disk in his Civic transmission. The bite point in the clutch travel included a strange chirp sound until he replaced the clutch assembly. At that time, you had to buy a Honda OEM clutch assembly to get the disk with the rubber bumper things instead of the usual springs.

Hondatalover wrote: When I returned home I sat in the car at idle gathering a few things before heading inside and I thought I heard a rod knock or spun bearing. Something bad. It fluctuated with revs but when I disengaged the clutch the noise went away, so relived that it's probably just the $140 pilot bearing... lol Gotta do the rear main anyway and might as well do the clutch and throw out bearing while we're in there.

If you hear the noise with the engine idling, the transmission in neutral, and the clutch pedal out meaning you're spinning the input shaft of the transmission, your pilot bearing is static due to the input shaft spinning with the crankshaft. If the noise goes away or you maybe hear the noise slow to a stop when you push the clutch pedal in, it might be main shaft bearing noise in the transmission. It wouldn't hurt to change the transmission fluid/oil and see how much metal is mixed in with the old oil.

I can't speak for the Vigor but the 2G Integra used 5w-30 motor oil for the manual transmission whereas the 3G Integra used the then-new Honda MTF. Those two Integras seemed to have a similar shift feel but who knows.

There are always other, whack-o possible causes for the noise. A friend back in the '80s had one of the rubber bumper isolators break loose from the clutch disk in his Civic transmission. The bite point in the clutch travel included a strange chirp sound until he replaced the clutch assembly. At that time, you had to buy a Honda OEM clutch assembly to get the disk with the rubber bumper things instead of the usual springs.

I drove around after work and put about 80 miles on the car, got home, popped the hood and looked over everything, noticed the coolant reservoir was empty and the upper radiator hose was deflated/ didn't have any coolant in it. The car wasn't leaving any puddles/ wet spots where I parked it (I checked) and it had coolant in the reservoir before I went to work. But no nothing.

My hunch is a head gasket. Unless there is another hose he missed. The oil is clean but it could be getting burned off in the cylinders.

And to boot, the AC stopped blowing cold. GREAT

I hope the shop will work with me on getting the coolant leak fixed (again) since they said it was fixed? I hate going back to places and asking for more help. The AC system probably has a leak if it was my guess, or the clutch on the compressor died.

I think I'll let the shop know about what happened and just keep an eye on the system. It could be as easy as someone forgetting to bleed the system properly, which can be a b!tch on these old Hondas from my own experience.

I'd dump more coolant into the reservoir and go for another drive on the highway with the heater running. It's the old shade tree mechanic bleeding method. I'd think you'd notice steam from the exhaust if the car burned off a quart or two of coolant in a short drive but maybe not.

And you should hear the A/C compressor clutch engaging unless the system has lost most of the refrigerant. When I finally had the system in our Fit recharged a few months ago, it was down to less than half of the correct weight of refrigerant but still cycling correctly.

Was the belt tensioner making the bearing noise you heard earlier? That's not a terribly expensive repair if the noise is gone. Nicely done.

By the way, I'd go easy with the shop about the A/C system. There isn't much they can do to test the system for leaks because they can't drive the car for an extended time. If it's not an obvious failure they'll have no choice but to charge it up again with dye and ask you to come back in a few days.

Oh I'm not upset with the shop over the AC at all. He and I both knew it could have a leak.

One thing I was upset with them was that they didn't fix all of the leaks. I understand they fixed the first and biggest leak they found but they should have pressure tested the system again after they fixed that one and checked for more with as old of a car it was. Because they fixed one it caused the next weakest link to go. It was kind of annoying because I made sure to mention the heater core hose to them..you can clearly see it from the back of the engine and a slow leak coming from it. The hose they replaced to fix the leak they found ran right under it.. go figure.

Either way I fixed it myself last night with some new clamps and some new 5/8" hose. I had to remove a few things but I managed to fix it all up.

The other thing was the windshield wipers, they were supposed to diagnose the the issue for me but he never charged me for it so it will just be another day.

When I take the car to get the A/C leak fixed I'll have the wipers looked at too. I don't know if I'll take it elsewhere or go back to them.
They stay about two weeks busy.

Still not leaking or using coolant! 80miles since I fixed it the other night. Coolant, power steering, brake and oil levels are perfectttttttt. Checked all the fittings and they're all dry and no spots are being left where I park now.

It isn't stalling at idle/ at stop lights anymore since I topped the tank off but it has started to bog and lose power again under full throttle during high rpm. It doesn't do it until I've been driving for some time and I don't know what to make of it. No CEL. I'm confident it's fuel pressure. I need to run a pressure gauge off the fuel rail and mount it where I can monitor it while on a mixed drive to confirm if pressure is dropping and when. Then why.

But god, this car hugs the road extremely well!! The steering is so tight and communicative. Really is a very tossable car, doesn't feel as heavy as it is and that's still with the rear 16mm sway bar. Lane changes/ slalom-like maneuvers are quick and very controlled with not a peep of tire noise or any rubbing anywhere. There is virtually no body roll either.

And ride the quality is nothing but smooth and stable on rough or smooth roads. Other than a odd vibration between 60-80mph that's likely one of my front wheels out of balance, maybe bent, and the alignment having a bit more toe out than it should. But above 80 this thing is like a jet liner. Almost whisper quiet, definitely quieter than the TSX and not a single rattle from the head liner and dash. This interior was so well buttoned down that it's lasted through 223 thousand miles yet won't let you know it (besides the condition of the seats and steering wheel)

There is one squeak coming from my door panel because it's missing a few fasteners but keeping my knee against it fixes it until I'm ready to put in my new panels and fasteners.

In 5th gear at 83mph the rpms are around 3,300. Perfect for passing without needing to downshift. Peak torque is 170ft-lbs at 3,800rpm. You barely hear the rumble of the 5 until you lay into it and wind noise is shockingly missing despite frameless windows and old 90s Honda sounds insulating measures. The radio doesn't need to be cranked to drown out what noise is coming through, which seems to be from the front floor area. It's not solitary levels of quiet but it's much easier to chat in. I'm starting to wonder if my TSX is really that poorly built/ repaired of if that's truly how cheap Honda became after 2001.

But to sum it up I am so happy with where my car is. So happy that I am able to enjoy such an old, rare Acura that I can hop in a go at anytime I like. It makes me feel bad that not everyone will get to know this car. Honda truly did an amazing job with this generation of Accord/ Vigor/ Legend. Even their Civics were top notch in build quality mostly. BMW was their main benchmark for the CB7 if I wasn't mistaken. It's clear the Vigor and Legend took a more serious approach while in development. I wish the CC2 had more love from enthusiasts during the time it was new and on sale. If this car had just that nudge of aftermarket support and community the Legend had it would have probably kept more of these cars on the road.

My car is far from perfect and I have put a lot and still plan to put a lot of money into it but it's extremely far from where it was when I got it two years ago and some of you may recognize that more than others.
But it makes me so proud of myself to get here. Makes me sick thinking about it almost being crushed.